Arts & Entertainment in Montreal by Category

Montreal’s Place des Arts is Montreal’s center for the performing arts. It is the home of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal (Montreal Symphony Orchestra), Les Grands Ballets Canadiens (Canada's top ballet companies), and the Opéra de Montréal (The Montreal Opera). The Place des Arts was built in 1962 and it is located in Montreal’s downtown area, along rue Ste-Catherine. It is the central piece of Montreal’s Quartier des Spectacles.

The Bell Centre (Le Centre Bell) is Montreal's premiere sports and entertainment complex. Located in downtown Montreal, the Bell Centre has a seating capacity of 21,273 and is considered to be the largest hockey arena in North America. It also happens to be the home of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team since 1996. The Bell Centre is one of the busiest and most technologically advanced venues in North America.

The Montreal Alouettes are Montreal’s second favorite sports team, right after the Montreal Canadiens. The Alouettes play in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and are known locally as the "Als". Their home field is the Molson Stadium at McGill University. The Als were brought back from the dead in 1996, after a 10-year hiatus. The original Alouettes were in Montreal from 1946 to 1986.

The Montreal Canadiens are one of the most storied franchises in any professional sport. They play in the National Hockey League (NHL). “The Habs”, as they are affectionately called by the locals, have won 24 Stanley Cups and have produced legendary players like Guy Lafleur, Maurice "Rocket" Richard, Jean Beliveau, Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy. The Habs are Montreal's most beloved sports team and the team recently celebrated their 100 year anniversary in 2009.

The Montreal Impact are Montreal’s professional soccer team. The Impact are part of the United Soccer League's First Division (second in North America to Major League Soccer). Over the last couple of years, they have emerged as one of the top teams in the USL division. They even captured the championship trophy in 2004. The Impact’s official colors are white and blue.

The Montreal Casino (Casino de Montréal) is located at Parc Jean-Drapeau, across from the Old Port of Montreal. It is the largest casino in Canada, and one of the the top ten largest casinos in the world. The main building of the casino contains five floors with elevators and escalators in the middle.

Montreal's La Ronde is an amusement park that is owned and operated by Six Flags. La Ronde is located on the eastern end of Saint Helen's Island. It is the only Six Flags theme park in all of Canada and also happens to be the second largest amusement park in Canada, right after Canada’s Wonderlad. La Ronde is also the host of L’International des Feux Loto-Québec, which is one of the most popular international fireworks competition in the world.